Tafsir
Surat ash-Shams

Part
2

Shaykh
Muhammad Hisham Kabbani

Audhūbillāhi min al-Shaytān
al-rajīm

Bismillāh
al-rahmān al-rahīm

Nawaytu
al-arbā`īn…

We arrived
to the verse, وَالْقَمَرِ
إِذَا تَلَاهَا“wal qamariidhātalāha.” We have said in the previous session
that as it is in the English commentary, “By the
sun and its splendor…by the night when it conceals it” and we have
explained about the light of the sun, that source of energy, for which the
moon becomes like a mirror reflecting that light. When everything becomes
dark, the moon appears. We have explained that extensively.

“wal
qamariidhātalāha”[1] – “By the moonas
she follows him.” By that Allāh
swt is showing us His Greatness beginning with the sun, as it is the greatest
sign that humankind can see with the naked eyes and it is a source of energy
and a source of light. So Allāh began this Sūrah
by swearing an oath by the sun. He then continued, “By
the moon,”which followed the same path. However the moon
cannot produce energy - instead it reflects the light of the sun. From the
day that Allāh swt created the moon, until
Judgment Day, the moon remains the moon, and it will never change. It is still
going, accompanying all time, and accompanying this universe from its beginning
to its end.

And
most of the scholars said the moon described [the one referenced in this verse]:

That
light is symbolizing the Prophet (s). And the moon, was created by Allāh
for people, when there is darkness, they are able to see, else they well be
lost. In the day you can see the sun. During the night you can see the moon.
So the day gives you the source of life, which is only in the hand of the
Creator. The source of life is not in the hand of creation. So the source
of entry that gives life, because of the sun, without the sun you cannot live.
So that energy, that power, is in the hand of the Creator.

The
moon is not giving you the energy and not giving you the life, but it is informing
you by reflection that there is a sun there, and you can see it in the daytime.
So at night, when we are seekers in the way of Allāh swt, when you are asking to go in that Way, ma`rifatullāh, to know Allāh
swt – we are blind. Tell me, can you see beyond that wall? No, you cannot.
It is impossible for you to be able to see.

When
someone is even in that room if there is no light, no electricity, you want
to walk, what do you do? You extend your hands, to feel or sense the way to
the door so you can go out.

If you
find yourself in a tunnel and you want to reach the shore of the safety on
the other side an there is no light you are in a situation that you cannot
see. You send a light. That light which it reflects to you is ma`rifatullāh.
When you know ma`rifatullāh, everything becomes clear. So that,
when you are on your way, and obstacles face you as you seek to reach the
state of perfection, you have to take these veils from your eyes, one by one,
in order to see. So you need that knowledge. Who gave you that knowledge?
It is that moon, which comes in the nighttime. When daytime arrives it means
you have reached ma`rifatullāh. While
you are crossing that way, you need a dalīl,
a guide. That is the hadrat al-muhammadīyya, the Presence of the Prophet (s). He
reflects to you the light that he already received and he will shine it on
you when you need it. When do you need it? When you are seeking that way.

That
is why He said, “The moon does not appear except at night.” It does not give
any benefit except at night. It means, “O My servant, seek in My Way.” You
are going to face obstacles, you are going to face devils opposing you on
the ًWay. You will need light to guide you.
That light comes from Muhammad (s).

Adam
(as) was in Paradise. Shaytān, the devil, came and whispered in his ears. As
a result of that, Allāh was unhappy with him
and sent him to earth as punishment. Why, if the devil can whisper in the
ears of Adam (as) can he not whisper in our ears? He does not need to whisper,
it is so easy.

They
say about the very famous walīBayāzīd
al-Bistāmī – who was even praised by the
one who described and praised tasawwuf according to his own understanding,
the founder of the ideology of Wahabism before Muhammad ibn Abdul Wahhab – Ibn Taymiyya,
who mentioned BayāzīdBistāmī
in his two volumes of his Majma`afatāwa, at-tasawwuf and`ilm as-sulūk.
He praised him and said he was a walī . Given
his attitude to many things in Islam, it was extraordinary for him to say
that.

He was
on hajj and he went to Madina for zīyāra.
He is a walī , meaning he could see with his
spiritual eyes. He inherited from that moon, the Prophet (s). So he saw Shaytān, the devil, running after people. That is a story
from the biography of SayyidināBayāzīd.

He saw
Iblīs and said, “What are you doing here? You
are a cursed one.” Iblīs replied, “I am busy.”
He asked, “With what are you busy?” Iblīs said,
“Many of the visitors here are so far from perfect that I just need to whisper
in their ears. But it is more simple, I don’t need to even whisper.” Bayāzīd said, “And what are you doing?” Iblīs replied, “I am riding on them. I put a bridle on
them and ride them.”

So something
came to the heart of Bayāzīd. Even a walī
is not ma`sūm. He may fall into sins,
but sins not done intentionally.He might do them by mistake and at least you
excuse him from what he falls into. No one is ma`sūm
except the Prophet (s). Even the Sahāba were
not ma`sūm.

So a
little bit of pride came to his heart. He said, “YāIblīs! Do you also
have a bridle for me?” What he meant was, “You cannot dare to approach me.”
He said, “YāBayāzīd.
For you I don’t even need a bridle. I will ride you without one.” Because
that one word of his dropped Bayāzīd,
causing him to fall into the weakness of the ego, causing distance to him
from the light of the moon. Everything must be balanced. If that smallest
hafwa, in Arabic, that stumble, caused him to fall
into such a grave position, what then do you think about us?

So Iblīs
left and Bayāzīd cursed him. After one or two weeks, it began
raining very hard in Madina, `alāsākinihāafdal as-salāt was-salām. And
the streets there do not absorb the rain. And there is hikmat- wisdom - in that. People are in need of water, and what is not absorbed
people collect.

It was
raining, raining and raining and the streets were flooded. People were everywhere
unable to cross the streets or walk. And old people men, women, etc. were
there not knowing what to do.

There
was an old man among them, walking with a stick, trying to walk through that
heavy flood, and he was about to die. And the people were afraid to go and
help him as it was a dangerous situation - he might fall and drown. So who
gave himself up? Awlīyā’ullāh - Bayāzīd.
He said, “Yāākhī
what is your problem?” The old man said, “I am afraid to fall in the flood
and drown.” Bayāzīd said, “Come and I
will carry you.” He carried him very far through the flooded streets and deposited
him safely on dry ground. Then the man said, “Ah Bayāzīd, did I not tell you I will ride you without
a bridle?”

The
meaning of that story is that Iblīs is after
us, at all times and places. That means every moment, you must be awake.

You
are awake during the daylight. And at night you must seclude yourself. And
if you want to move, you must seek a light. When you are a seeker in the Way,
and you want to reach ma`rifatullāh,
at the beginning there are many obstacles. It is in such situations that the
moon appears to give you guidance to help you reach the shore of safety.

So the
moon is reflecting the light of the sun in dark nights for the seekers of
the Way that are asking to reach the station of heavenly Lordship’s perfect
perfection through their life – to reach that level.

How
can one reach that? One must follow the one human reality that has been perfected
in all perfections. Since Allāh created it,
that reality, until the end – Judgment Day. And that reality is the locus
and focus of concentration of all the Beautiful Divine Names and Attributes.
It is that reality which can be dressed and to which will be opened from the
knowledge of these Attributes and Names, that will be dressed on that human
reality who is perfected perfect in all the Names and Attributes.

That
is why to be perfected, you will reach a high level, you will be mentioned
in a Presence better than your presence. That is why the dhākirūn-Allāh – those who remember
Allāh - will be mentioned in a Presence better than our
presence. It means in the Presence of Allāh
and that is where the believers are mentioned.

The
indication of one’s reaching that station of highly perfected perfection is
to be mentioned in that Presence. And who is mentioned in that Presence? Whose
name is raised with the name of the Creator? The name of Muhammad (s), where
Allāh said, “lāilāha ill-Allāh Muhammadun Rasūlullāh.”

That
is why he is mazhartajallīhaqīqat al-ilāhīyya.
He is the “appearance of the manifestation of the Reality of the Heavenly
Light of the Creator” Who dressed him with different perfections coming from
Allāh’s Attributes. That is why the Prophet
(s) is described in Quran as:

He described
him (s) as rā’ūfunrahīm,
meaning he (s) is inheriting from Allāh’s Attributes; those with which Allāh is dressing him.

And
his appearance, Allāh wanted the Prophet (s)
to appear as the moon appeared in the universe. He wanted the light of the
Prophet (s) to appear different than the light of the other prophet. That
is why He did not say, “`IsāRasūlullāh,”
or, “MūsāRasūlullāh.”
He made everyone say, “Muhammadun Rasūlullāh.”
That is all prophets as well.

He brought
all the prophets and brought forth before them the essence of the Prophet,
and ordered them to follow him.[2]

And
he (s) said, ‏‏آدم‏ ‏فمندونهتحت
لوائي ولافخر “Adam and whoever is other than him
are under my flag on Judgment Day.”[3]

And
he (s) said, أنا سيِّدُ
ولَدِ آدمَ يومَ
القيامةِ ولا
فخرَ،- “I am the master of the children of Adam on Judgment Day
and I say it without pride.”[4]

Allāh
raised him (s). Allāh made him to be seen. “lāilāha ill-Allāh
Muhammadu Rasūlullāh.”

That
is the Moon for the universe, the Moon of the Reality of Creation. He made
him (s) the focus of all creation. That creation, all of it knows about Muhammad
(s), because he is the reflector of the light of ma`rifatullāh.

So those
seekers who are seeking in different, indasalookihm was saylihim fil `aalam– as they
seek and move in different levels and states into the universe, Allāh gives them:

“O
ye assembly of Jinns and men! If it be ye can pass beyond the zones of the
heavens and the earth, pass ye! not without authority shall ye be able to
pass!”[55:33]

O jinn
and mankind - if you want to penetrate through the atmosphere, or different
levels of the universe or beyond the universe, you need a Sultan. Who is that
Sultan? It is the Moon which is guiding the seeker. Without that light how
can you move?

So those
seekers who are seeking in different levels, uplifting themselves against
the desires of their egoes and reaching a situation
that they can go beyond the cage of the body; they are able to move beyond
the universe. Then they are coming down into the world of worlds, the world
of creation, back. [This is a continuous cycle of] ascending up and descending
down, through their lives and through their selves. Those are the ones that
Allāh swt gave them to understand the human
reality from the One that Allāh granted him
to be the representative of humanity completely; that is Muhammad (s). Those
begin to learn from that knowledge which the Prophet (s) is sending to their
hearts from Allāh swt. And he (s) will bring
them to a situation of complete annihilation of ma`rifatullāh,
fanā’un fillah.

How
does one reach fanā’un fillah?
What is the description for us of that station in Sūrat ash-Shams?

He did
not say “wal-qamari” first and then, “Ash-Shams.” That is because
the sun is the source of the moon’s light. When the sun is up the reflection
of the moon disappears. When you reach the light of the sun, the moon annihilates,
disappears, and reaches the maqām
al-fanā’. Why did scholars describe the
moon as the Prophet (s), and in the tafsir he is the Reality of the light?
It means the light of the moon annihilates, dissolves and disappears in the
light of the sun - “yafnafī
al-shams.” The moon is the symbol of the Prophet (s) and the stars are
the symbol of the awlīyā’ullāh. If
the moon disappeared in the light of the sun, then the awlīyā’,
the stars, also disappear in the light of the sun.

That
is the reality of the station of fanā’unfillāh. That is not wahdat al-wujūd. We don’t believe in that. There is no wahdat
al-wujūd. There is no unity with Allāh. That is impossible; that is harūm
to speak on.

Can
you become one with Allāh, hāshā?
You should ask United Airlines. You cannot even unite with your wife or husband,
to agree on everything. How can you become one with the Creator? Can you create?
You become annihilated in His Bahr al-Qudra, not with His Essence.
There is no unification or union with His Essence. How would the Creator become
created? There is no way for that to happen, so that is a wrong understanding.
We do not accept that, although the Wahabis say we believe in wahdat al-wujūd because they want to attack us.

[What
about Shaykh al-Akbar?] He never said [that about wahdat al-wujūd].
What he had in his manuscript they added to whatever they wanted. Yadasu
`alayh. There was one copy on the east coast and one on the west. And
they added on to it. And there was no way to communicate like we have today,
[to explain the discrepancies]. In all his books he never mentioned that belief.

[What
about when He become the eyes that you see with, the ears you hear with?]

That
does not mean you become Allāh. It means Allāh
will give you a power to see.

Māzāla `abdīyataqarabu ilayya bin-nawāfil
hatta uhibah. Fa idhāahbabtahu kuntu sama`ualladhīyasma`ubihi wa basarahualladhīyubsirubihi, wa yadahalladhīyubtishubihi wa lisanahualladhīyatakallamu bih.” – “My servant does not cease to approach
Me through voluntary worship until I will love him. When I love him, I will
become the ears with which he hears, the eyes with which he sees the hand
with which he acts and the tongue with which he speaks.”[5]

“I will
become the eyes he can see with” means, “We will give power that he can see
with.” It does not mean you will have His Eyes. But you will be given a power
to be able to see.

Many
people make that mistake. No one can be united with Allāh. It is not our belief, that. But our belief is
that the creator, the creation. Lāilāha ill-Allāh. He
is the Creator. Muhammad ur-Rasūlullāh
symbolizes the creation. So all for whom Muhammad (s) has been sent, including
the Prophet (s) himself, are to be servants to Allāh
swt. There is no unity there. It is a separation. “Lāilāha ill-Allāh”
is an Unseen Treasure, ghayban mutlaq, Absolute Unseen.

So in
what is annihilation then? Not annihilation in the Essence, which they call
“annihilation in Allāh” That is haram,
hāsha. We cannot say that. It is annihilation
in the Attribute of Power, because Allāh said, إِنَّا لِلّهِ
وَإِنَّـا إِلَيْهِ
رَاجِعونَ“innālillāhi
wa innā ilayhi raji`ūn” –
“To Allāh We belong, and to Him is our return"[2:156] because
when we die, we go back to where we were created, that is the annihilation
in our origin, in Bahr al-qudrā, the
Ocean of Power.

Similarly,
annihilation in the Prophet (s) means you completely give yourself up in love
of the Prophet (s). The annihilation in the shuyukh means you will prefer
anything for your Shaykh so that he will guide you to reality of the Prophet
and Prophet (s) will guide you to Bahr al-Qudra, annihilation.

That
is why in the daytime the moon disappears. During the day, the sun is out
and the stars disappear. That means there is no existence before Allāh’s
Existence. That means everything is `abd.
Even the sun, but we are speaking here symbolically.

So the
moon, although it disappears when the sun is up, shining, the moon disappears,
but it only disappears only when the sun is shining. But the light of the
moon is still there, it is still shining. The light of the stars is still
there. But they do not stand up as existing in front of what is greater than
them. Allāhu Akbar. No one can stand up and
say, “I am existing.” That is like standing up here and saying, “I am the
boss, I am the greatest.” Though you still have that light. But because of
that light you know you are nothing. Tiny miney. You are nothing. This earth compared to the universe,
might not be a dot. And you compared to the earth might not be a dot. So how
are you standing up and saying “I am”.

And
many people say, “By Allāh’s favor on us, we
are Muslim saying, “lāilāha
ill-Allāh Muhammadun Rasūlullāh.”

Others
are saying, “There is no God, aliens created us.” Where are those aliens then?
Some say, “Monkeys created us.” Others say, “UFOs created us.” Later they
might say that dinosaurs created us. They are falling more and more into the
trap of Shaytān.

So although
you are not in existence, that light is still there. That is why when Allāh
gave that understanding to the Prophet, the Perfect Perfected Reality, he
brought him to the Presence of Allāh in the
Isrā’ and Mi`rāj.
[At such a station] you are not going to say, “I exist.” Instead you will
say, “Existence belongs to Allāh alone.” That is why Sayyidinā
Muhammad (s) was called `abd.

“Glory
to the One Who did take His servant for a Journey by night …” [17:1]

He understood
his position, as `Abdullāh. We say it with
our tongue but not by our actions; not by our heart. You have to show it by
action. To show it by action you must be submitting to Allāh’s Will. To submit to Allāh’s
Will, means no objection. What comes, comes, what goes, goes.

There
was one Sahabi in the time of the Prophet. He said,
“If Allāh gave me the whole dunya in the morning
and takes it from me in the evening, or if I have nothing in the morning and
the whole dunya in the evening, it is not different to me.” That means he
was balanced. When someone is balanced, he does not exceed the limits.

But
today, when someone becomes a doorkeeper for the president, he begins to think
he is something great. And if he becomes president, or if he becomes the king,
he wants people to worship him. Now they even name the country with their
own name. Who gave them the authority to name the nation after them. Do you
own the land? Allāh owns you and owns everything.
How is Allāh going to give these people and
everyone like us; how is He going to call us to His Presence, to call us to
approach that Reality, when we are not yet understanding ourselves, and we
still think that we are something.

There
is no one who is something in Allāh’s Presence. Even the prophets are afraid. Even
Sayyidinā Muhammad (s), though Allāh
raised him [to the highest maqām], is still
afraid.

Don’t
fight. It is not going to benefit. Don’t criticize - it is not going to benefit.
Don’t complain… what is written is written for you. What is destined for you
is destined for you.

Allāhuma
salli `alāSayyidinā Muhammad
hatta yardāSayyidinā
Muhammad.

So when
that light annihilates in the light of the sun, that means the light of the
Reality of the Perfect Perfected human being is annihilating in the light
of that Divine Presence, of Allāh’s Presence,
completely, until there will be no athar, no trace. At that time you
can reach the maqām at-tawhīd. Then you will be able to understand the reality
of “lāilāha
ill-Allāh.” Then you are a real muwahhid. You are pure in your tawhīd.

Now
they tell you all kinds of issues regarding tawhīd,tawhīd
al-ilūhīyya, tawhīdar-rubūbīyya, and they don’t understand
anything from tawhīd. That means when
your existence is completely submitted and gone, in fact, at that time you
will understand the maqām at-tawhīd. That means, “When I called you to ascend
to My Presence,” and He is the only one who reached the maqām
at-tawhīd. That is why Allāh
placed “Muhammadu Rasūlullāh” because
he will never transgress that limit. That is why he said:

“Say:
‘If ye do love Allāh, Follow me: Allāh will love
you and forgive you your sins: For Allāhn is Oft-Forgiving,
Most Merciful.’"
[3:31]

You
know in the old airports, when you land there is a car that comes and written
on it is a sign which says, “Follow me.” The airplane has to follow. It cannot
say, “No.” Like a train. There is a main engine and all the wagons are hooked
behind. “In kuntum tuhibūnAllāh…Allāh will love you. When? “When you follow
my footsteps.”

If you
want to reach maqām at-tawhīd,
and you cannot reach it, only the Prophet can reach it, but you will be able
to follow the traces, and you will continue perfecting it and perfecting it,
and you might reach what Allāh has for you, you might reach 90% or 95% or 99%.
Only the Prophet (s) reached the complete perfection of maqām
at-tawhīd and that is why Allāh called him to His Presence in Isrā’ andMir`aj.

Allāhuma
salli `alāSayyidinā Muhammadin
wa `alāāliSayyidinā Muhammad.

So when
you reach that level you will never lose it. You will be always like a light.
That is why the Prophet (s), when he reached the station of “Muhammadun
Rasūlullāh,” he is always “Muhammadun
Rasūlullāh.” He is always in that
position. He won’t be there now and not there later. Not one other prophet
has been mentioned like that other than Sayyidinā
Muhammad(s).

So when
they reach that level, when the awlīyā’ullāh
follow the footsteps of the Prophet (s) [they reach the station described
as]:

“Among
the Believers are men who have been true to their covenant with Allāh.”
[33:23]

They
are following the footsteps of Sayyidinā Muhammad
(s). Allāh will give them and keep them with
that light. Then they become light for others, they become reflectors. Some
planets, have more than one moon. Jupiter has how many? Whatever they have.
You become a moon to the moon. The moon is one. That is Sayyidinā
Muhammad (s). He reflects from the Divine Presence and those who are also
reflecting become moons as well. And Allāh’s
swt extreme generosity never ends. May Allāh
forgive us, and may Allāh bless us and next
time we continue. Verse 3 and 4, inshā’Allāh.